Further talks between the pro-Agreement parties in the North will take place over the coming weeks in an attempt to break the current political impasse. An end to paramilitarism, the restoration of the Executive and Assembly, policing and equality issues will be on the agenda.
There will be bilateral and trilateral talks between the parties and another round-table discussion.
The announcement was made yesterday by the Northern Secretary, Mr Paul Murphy, following a second round of talks in Belfast which he co-chaired with the Minister for Foreign Affairs, Mr Cowen.
Sinn Féin criticised the Ulster Unionist leader, Mr David Trimble, who missed the meeting and last week's discussions. The DUP is boycotting the talks which it claims are worthless in advance of next May's Assembly elections.
Yesterday's 2½-hour meeting was "robust and honest" with all the parties placing their "cards on the table", according to Mr Murphy. The central issue had been paramilitarism but policing, human rights, equality and the restoration of the Executive were also raised.
Mr Cowen insisted the focus of future talks would be "the full implementation of this Agreement in all its aspects, including all the difficult aspects". The aim was to create a "permanent and inclusive partnership government". Hard choices had to be made, he added.
The Sinn Féin president, Mr Gerry Adams, insisted the bulk of implementing the remainder of the Belfast Agreement lay with the British government. It had to "knuckle down to the job" and "actually move with a time-frame, plans and programme".
His party colleague, Mr Martin McGuinness, criticised Mr Trimble's absence.
"It would be very helpful if the leader of the UUP would show up at these meetings," he said. "Missing one meeting is excusable but missing two is quite inexcusable. Anyone who is serious about trying to resolve the present difficulties in this process needs to recognise the importance of attendance at these meetings."
Mr Adams said Mr Trimble was evidently trying to score "some political point" by staying away.
The Ulster Unionist Party called on the participants to recognise the real threat posed to the political process was by republicans.
"There is a great game of semantics being played at Stormont," said Sir Reg Empey. "The UUP are the only ones not in denial about why we are in this pickle. Reckless republican actions have brought us to this point. Yet most of those people sitting at the talks table seem blissfully unwilling to challenge Sinn Féin/IRA.
"They talk in ever-decreasing circles about everything under the sun, with little time devoted to calling Sinn Féin/IRA to account. Our message couldn't be clearer. We need 'acts of completion' not waffle. We demand the truth from Sinn Féin/IRA, not more subterfuge, double-talk and lies."
Sir Reg said the British government must "make a stand for what is right" which involved "expelling the guilty, reinstating the institutions without them and only readmitting them when they have done what they should have done two years ago".
The SDLP leader, Mr Mark Durkan, said he hoped there would be a "reliable and sustainable" outcome from future talks which would lead to the full implementation of the Agreement. He would have preferred more "substantive progress" than had been made at yesterday's meeting but it had still been useful.
The UK Unionist leader, Mr Bob McCartney, was the only anti-Agreement unionist present. He said he was not there to negotiate but to protest against the passage of legislation in the Republic which would allow British direct rule ministers to replace ministers from the North's Executive at cross-Border meetings.
He claimed the legislation was "a second treaty executed semi-secretly" between the two governments. "With the exclusion of unionist representatives from the North-South Council we now have effectively joint authority in these areas as the implementation bodies have executive authority within their defined areas."
Mr McCartney said the onus for future political progress lay with Sinn Féin. "A fork in the road has been reached. Democracy or terror are the routes Sinn Féin must choose. There is only one issues from this review at this time - the decommissioning and disbanding of the Provisional IRA and all other paramilitary organisations."